Match Group says Facebook’s new dating feature will have ‘no negative impact on Tinder’

Match Group, which owns numerous dating services, including Tinder, Match.com and OkCupid, said again on Tuesday that it’s not worried about Facebook getting into the dating game. This time, it has some numbers to back it up.

When Facebook surprised everyone by launching a dating feature last week at its annual developer conference, Match Group stock took a huge hit. At the time, company executives went on the attack.

“Come on in. The water’s warm,” said Joey Levin, CEO of IAC, which owns a controlling stake in Match. “Their product could be great for U.S./Russia relationships.”

“We’re flattered that Facebook is coming into our space — and sees the global opportunity that we do — as Tinder continues to skyrocket,” added Match CEO Mandy Ginsberg. “We’re surprised at the timing given the amount of personal and sensitive data that comes with this territory.”

Now Match is back to let investors know they shouldn’t worry about Facebook’s new product, but it’s using numbers to back up its claim. When Match Group reported Q1 earnings on Tuesday, the most interesting part was its argument to investors that Facebook shouldn’t be considered a threat.

The company’s earnings slides included a page basically dedicated to Facebook. The slide claims that the “average user” for dating services uses three products at once — meaning it’s not a winner-take-all market — and included a chart showing that the vast majority of new Tinder users no longer sign up with their Facebook profile.

“They didn’t want to mix Facebook with their dating lives,” said Ginsberg, in a statement. “We also saw a surge in new users, who obviously wanted to keep their dating life separate from their family and friends. This is not a utility feature. In the world of dating, brand and the intent of the community matter.”

“We don’t think FB will have any impact on Tinder, which is our growth engine,” she continued.

That’s easy to say, of course, but Facebook tends to throw its weight around when it sets its mind to something. It’s still unclear if dating will fall under that category, but Match Group is evidently thinking a lot about it, even if it won’t admit it’s concerned.

Match’s earning numbers looked good. The company reported better-than-expected revenue of $407 million, up 36 percent over last year, and better than the $385 million analysts were expecting.

Tinder, the mobile dating feature that will undoubtedly draw comparisons to whatever Facebook comes out with, now has 3.5 million paying subscribers, up 368,000 over Q4. The stock has not really moved in after-hours trading.

Match Group

This article originally appeared on Recode.net.

Will you support Vox’s explanatory journalism?

Most news outlets make their money through advertising or subscriptions. But when it comes to what we’re trying to do at Vox, there are a couple reasons that we can't rely only on ads and subscriptions to keep the lights on.

First, advertising dollars go up and down with the economy. We often only know a few months out what our advertising revenue will be, which makes it hard to plan ahead.

Second, we’re not in the subscriptions business. Vox is here to help everyone understand the complex issues shaping the world — not just the people who can afford to pay for a subscription. We believe that’s an important part of building a more equal society. We can’t do that if we have a paywall.

That’s why we also turn to you, our readers, to help us keep Vox free. If you also believe that everyone deserves access to trusted high-quality information, will you make a gift to Vox today?

One-Time Monthly Annual

$5/month

$10/month

$25/month

$50/month

Other

$

Yes, I'll give $5/month

Yes, I'll give $5/month

We accept credit card, Apple Pay, and Google Pay. You can also contribute via